


Inadequacy

by CycloneRachel



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Brief mentions of other characters - Freeform, Comfort/Angst, Forgiveness, Gen, Insecurity, Male Friendship, One Shot, Season 3 finale spoilers, and that it makes sense, but i'm hoping it does, so i couldn't go back and rewatch to make sure this lined up in time?, wrote this while my internet was out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-27
Updated: 2018-06-27
Packaged: 2019-05-29 12:26:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15073127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CycloneRachel/pseuds/CycloneRachel
Summary: Or, Brainy has doubts about his future, and Winn finds himself in the unusual position of having to comfort him for once.





	Inadequacy

“Brainy?” Winn said, looking into the DEO conference room. The Coluan was still there, having taken off his image inducer now. Even from just inside the door, Winn could tell that Brainy was crying. He was shaking, and he looked like he was closed in on himself. “Are you okay?”

“You have far more important things than me to worry about right now.” Brainy answered. “Go help Supergirl. I will follow shortly.”

“No.”

“No?”

“No, I’m not letting you do this.” Winn said. He pulled up a chair, and went to sit in front of Brainy, as the other man stood up, soon collapsing into Winn as Winn tried to hug him and keep him standing.

“I… I am sorry.” Brainy said, still shaking as he sat down, and Winn joined him in the chair across from his. “It is just that… seeing you again, now knowing everything you will do, I was just reminded-“

“Reminded of what?” Winn asked softly.

“Of how jealous I am.” Brainy admitted, hands out and open, looking into Winn’s eyes. “Of you, that is. You have already done so much… and I cannot imagine anyone speaking of me in that way, a thousand years in my future.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.” Winn said. “I mean, first of all, I have a feeling that if people don’t do that, you’d make them do it.”

Brainy almost glared at him, but he couldn’t maintain that expression for long, eyes dropping to the space between them.

“Sorry.” Winn answered. “But, really, I’m sure you’ve already done a lot of great things. I mean, you are one of the founders of the Legion, right? Or one of its first members? That’s got to count for something.”

Brainy breathed slowly, in and out, not knowing what to say- so Winn continued.

“And I mean, Mon-El hypes you up even when you aren’t around. Like, not a week goes by without him mentioning how you and him took down some bad guy, or him talking about an invention you made that saved lives all over the universe, or him saying how much he missed you, while you were gone.”  
“Really?”

“Yes!” Winn insisted. “He called you his best friend. And, well, I was his best friend when he first got here- I showed him around, helped him get accustomed to Earth. I don’t think I did a bad job, with that. So, if you were like that for him in the 31st century, then I think we have more in common than you believe we have. And that means you shouldn’t be jealous of me, because we’re basically the same.”

 _You have no idea_ , Brainy thought. But he didn’t want to put an additional burden on him.

“Wait.” Winn continued, as if he could read his mind. “You said you have an extremely distant relative who’s evil, right?”

“Yes… though that is in terms of time, and not family relations. He is still my great-great-grandfather- only four generations removed.”

“Right.” Winn said, nodding. “Well, I mean, my dad is- was- a really, really bad guy, as well. He tried to kill my friends, and a bunch of innocent bystanders, hell. He got arrested for murder, and even after his death, he convinced this person who he met in prison to try to kill my mom and I. And I still sometimes wonder if I’ll turn out like him, even now.”

Brainy sat in silence, only looking at him for the longest time, but finally, he said, “I also wonder if I will become my ancestor. Though, it would most likely happen through him infecting my systems, as there is a part of him buried inside me, however guarded it may be.”

“You know, sometimes I forget you’re part-computer.” Winn said. They’d moved closer to each other at this point, and Winn’s hand was on Brainy’s knee, making him look up at him. “You seem as human as the rest of us, most of the time. And between you and me, that’s not a bad thing at all.”

“That was not the case on my planet.” Brainy answered. “Emotional presentation was… discouraged. And even now, I am still trying to un-learn the programming that was drilled into me on Colu- override the twenty-two years of teaching that I must be subservient, and put the needs of the planet over my own.”

“Well, you’re here now.” Winn said. “And you can put yourself first, even if it seems hard. You’re gonna be okay- you’ve survived here this long, right?”

“I have indeed.” Brainy agreed with him, for once. “But… I am sorry. I should be encouraging you, instead of feeling sorry for myself. You are going to do great things, in the future, even if thus far, I have not matched them.”

“It’s okay.” Winn said. “After all, you’re what, twenty-nine? And all that stuff I do is way in my future, right? So, once you get back, you still have time, to do even better things than me, with more resources. And while I may have thought you were kind of a jerk before, and maybe thought you didn’t deserve being all arrogant… now, I think I understand you better.”

“Oh? And what is your perception of me?”

“You always brag about your intelligence because it’s what you contribute- what makes you special, amongst your friends. Without that, you’re nothing. And you overcompensate, trying to find a way to save everyone with your plans, because of how evil your ancestor is. You’re hoping that maybe, someday, you can make up for that. But you never feel like you’ve gotten there yet, even though you’ve been fighting evil for a long while. And working here just brought all of that out even more, like you need to impress all of us, even though, I mean, come on. Time-traveling, alien robot superhero from the future? Really cool already. No impressing needed.”

Brainy blinked back more tears, looking up at him. “Really?”

“How many more times do I have to say it?”

“I do not deserve such praise. But… I am sorry, for making you feel lesser than you are.”

“And I’m sorry I didn’t get to understand you before it was too late.”

Winn smiled, and stood up, Brainy following him immediately after.

“So, we’re okay? We’re friends?”

Brainy wiped his tears away with his sleeve, before hugging him.

“Okay. Friends.”

“Good. Now, let’s go out there, and save the world. What do you say?”

“I believe, as you would say, “It’s about time.”’

“Couldn’t agree more.”


End file.
